The Lucky Pawn

The Bronx

Afternoon

You and Bigby climb out of the cab and look up at the neon sign over the building.

Lucky Pawn

Jewelry Repair Antiques Batteries

The two of you walk in as you hear an argument going on.

"It's dirty."

"No it's not."

You two look over and see Toad arguing with Jack as he tries to hand in a familiar coat. "It looks like you slept in it. In a pile of garbage." Jack said as he looks at the cloak. "Jack, why are you--I've seen you take a torn purse for a tenner!" Toad shouted.

"Yeah, but I also got her phone number. I don't want your phone number." Jack said then he looks over to see you walking towards him.

"Really?" He said, exasperated.

"What?" Toad asked and he turns around to see you and Bigby as well.
"This is a surprise." Toad said, annoyed.

"We're just here for information. It's about the murders." Bigby replied.

"This'll take two minutes and I'll be out your way." Toad said. "I'm not taking the coat." Jack said again. "But it's magic." Toad said as he turns to face Jack.

"So." Jack said, shrugging.

"And it'd be covering a check I already wrote." said Toad. "Okay, well....that sounds like a your problem problem to me." said Jack. "Yeah, it is! And so I came here to sell it off!" Toad shouts at him.

"Hey, wait a minute...that Faith's coat!" You exclaimed as you got a second look at the coat. "It was Faith's coat." Toad corrected. "Look, you left it in my place, what'd you expect me to do?"

"Yes, I think the oft-cited statute of finders keepers clearly states that it's his now, (y/n)." Jack said with a smirk as you glare back at him.

"So what's it gonna be?" Toad asked Jack.

"I don't know what to tell ya. See if Cindy needs a coat, I don't know." Jack said and Toad let's put a frustrated sigh. He turns to you two and said. "This is to pay for those bloody glamours, you know. You and your blinkered rules. If the witches didn't charge so fuckin' much...I wouldn't have to be in here, dealing with this nonsense."

"What are you complainin' to them, for?" Jack asked. "I guess I don't know." Toad said as you two didn't say anything to him.

"I don't know what you're gettin' so steamed about....it shouldn't be that big of a shock that I'm not going to take an ass-hair coat." Jack replied.

"No, I guess it shouldn't be....since this whole bleedin' operation's just a set-up for one of his shady fuckin' loans." Toad shouts in anger and Jack jumps in fright, his face full of shock. "Ix-nay on the oan-lays. Okay, og-fray?" Jack whispered to him.

"I mean, what kind of a game are you runnin' here?" Toad asked.

"Toad--"

"You turn down peoples' stuff so you can peddle his shit?" Toad asked.

"We know who you're talking about." Bigby said as Jack looks at you two in fear. "Um, Og-Fray?" He asked as he points at Toad. "The Crooked Man. Right? This is his place. Those are his loans." You said.

Toad smiles and grabs the coat as he said. "Well, I'll leave you to your business....I'm sure you'll have a lot to talk about."

"Good luck with that glamour, Toad." Jack sneers as Toad starts to walk away. "Fuck off." Toad shouts at him.

"Leave the coat." Bigby said, firmly.

"How the hell do you expect me to get a glamour, then?" Toad asked him as he throws the coat down on the floor.
"It's not like I've got a lot of options, you know. It's just tough, is all." He said.

"Just do what I fuckin' say, alright?" Bigby said to him. "Leave the coat. Find another way."

"Fine! I'm leaving...but I'm taking the coat with me!" Toad said, angrily

"Toad." You said, exasperated. "If you're gonna be out like this, can't you at least wear a bigger hat?"

Toad glares at you as Jack smiles and waves. "Have a good day." He said to Toad. Toad then flips Jack the bird then he turns to you and Bigby and flips you two the bird and picks up the coat. "Believe me, Toad, you can always go to The Farm." Bigby said as Toad walks out of the store while you suppress the urge to flip Toad the bird.

"He really grows in ya." Jack said, smiling, as Bigby turns around to face him. Jack gets this frightened look on his face as you turn to face him as well. "Look, I work here sometimes for the extra cash. It's something stable. You know, between more....entrepreneurial bouts. And...before either of you ask, I've never seen the Crooked Man in here. Neither hide nor hair, and all that. In fact, as far as I can tell, he's never even actually stepped forth in here." Jack replied as you two walk closer to the table.

"But Bloody Mary works for him. And the last time we saw her, she had the Woodsman's axe." Bigby said as he placed his hands on the table, glaring at Jack. "So?" Jack asked, nervously. "So the last time anybody else saw that axe....it was here." You replied

"We'd never take something like that." Jack said and you and Bigby stare at him, eyebrow raised. "Is this really why you two came down here?" Jack asked, nervously, his eyes darting back and forth around the room.

"We'll be asking the questions here, Jack." Bigby said, firmly. "Okay. Fine. Fire away." Jack said, quickly.

"Where's the manager? Why isn't he here?" Bigby asked as he moves away from the table. "Maybe I'm the manager, you ever think of that?" Jack asked and you snorted at this. "We know you aren't, so where is he?" You asked. "I dunno, I don't keep tabs on him. He's probably out getting shit faced and eating cows right now. Listen, I gotta start closing up shop, so, uh--" Jack said as he walks out from behind the desk.

"Close? It's the middle of the day." Bigby remarked.

"What can I say, Jersey likes to run at odd hours. And, really, he'd be the one to talk to, so....can't you two just swing by later. It really wouldn't be good for me if he sees your faces when he walks in. So, uh..." Jack said as he walks to the front.

"What else can you tell us about Jersey Devil?" Bigby asked. "Just that he's a fuckin' psycho and I like to stay out of his way. I typically work when he's not here. But I can call you when he comes back, alright?" Jack replied.

"Shut up, Jack." You said. "If the Jersey Devil isn't here to answer our questions....it also means he isn't here to get in our way. So, we're gonna take a look around...as long as we've got the elbow room."

"Alriiiiight. Don't let me get in your way." Jack said as he starts to close up.
"We won't." Bigby said and the two of you began to spread out and look around the shop.

Bigby walks up to a statue of the Headless Horseman that was on the far left of the room. "The Headless Horseman? Isn't this Crane's?" Bigby asked. "Maybe? I don't know." Jack replied. Bigby rolled her eyes then walks next to the table and sees a familiar dagger. "This is Prince Lawrence's dagger. Who sold this?"

"I don't know." Jack replied, shrugging.

"Who would have done that? One of the Tweedles...." you started to say but Jack says. "Whoever did it, must've needed the money bad. Which shouldn't come as a total shock. You guys don't know how hard most of us have it....do you?"

"Yeah? If you had our job, you wouldn't get out of bed." Bigby growls at him.

"It was a rhetorical question....but sure, fine." Jack sneers as you look through all of the trinkets in the glass cases, you see a crystal ball and some needles, which reminded you of Briar Rose.

Bigby goes over to another display and saw a note next to it that said:

Cleaving Axe.

Previous owner:

The Woodsman

Ensorcelled by Druids

"I thought you said you'd never take something like this." Bigby growls as you look over and see Bigby walking up to Jack, angrily. "Um....um, what?" Jack stammered, nervously. "Jack?" Bigby asked. "Uh, yeah?" Jack replied, nervously again.

"When was Mary here?" Bigby asked him, angrily. "Was who here?" Jack said as you walk up next to Bigby.

"Bloody Mary. Because the axe was here....but it's gone. And she had it. So she was here." replied Bigby.

"I don't know anything about that." Jack said in fear. "I don't. Really." He cowers back as Bigby pulls up the little hatch table and keeps walking up to Jack. "I mean, I don't work every day, so....and even when I do work, I just try and keep my head down." Jack said as he backs away from Bigby.

He looks over at you for help but you just shake your head at him as you fold your arms across your chest. Then Bigby punches Jack across the face. He let's out a scream then looks at Bigby. "Okay, okay, fuckin' geez, take it easy....It was Mary, she took it, okay. That's all I know!" Jack exclaimed.

"That's all you know? You don't know she almost fucking killed me with it last night?" Bigby asked him, his anger boiling. "No, no, I had no idea! She sometimes comes in to pick up shit. Sometimes it's for her...." Jack said.

"You know where she lives? Where she took it?" You asked.

"I don't know where that crazy chick lives, and I don't wanna know." Jack said as he looks over at you. "Well, for your sake, you better think of something to tell us." Bigby growled as Jack looks back at him. "That's all I can tell you. I'm being straight, here! I'm just part-time. I mean, it's Jersey who's the one who's into this stuff! He's one of the Crooked Man's boys, okay? And it'd be great if he was here to tell you all this, but he's not, so just--" Jack was about to say but then all of you heard another voice speak from outside.

"Jersey, don't--don't give me that shit. What the fuck is the point of havin' a system if you're just gonna--"

"It's not my fuckin' system."

"But you--you're the guy who makes sure that--"

"I'm the guy that keeps shit in order and that's it, Woody."

Bigby ducks down as you jump over the table and hide just as you saw Woody and another man, you assumed was Jersey, walk in the building and see the gate was pulled down. "Who closed the fucking gate? Jack?" Jersey asked, angrily.

He pulls up the gate and you could see that Jersey was a balding ginger haired man with a mustache and wearing a shirt with pants and suspenders. He turns to face Woody and said. "If you love your axe so fuckin' much, why'd you pawn it in the first fuckin' place, huh?"

"I didn't pawn it, asshole. It was stolen from my apartment. And Gren said that he saw it here. Now tell me where it is right fuckin' now." Woody shouted at him.

You and Bigby stand up and go over to the two arguing men. "Hiya, fellas." Both of you said, smiling. "God. And these fuckin' guys, too?" Jersey exclaimed, annoyed. "Bigby? (Y/N)? What are you--" Woody started to ask but Jersey talks over to him as he looks at Jack. "Is his axe even here?" He asked Jack. "Nope. It isn't." Jack replied.

"Just like I said, it's not here. Happy?" Jersey said, smirking, then he walks over to you and Bigby and said. "So tell me what you two are here for, or get the fuck out."

"Uh....they wanted to know where--"

"Actually, you know what, I don't care what they wanted." Jersey said, interrupting Jack, as he smirks. "You work with the Crooked Man." You said, firmly, as you and Bigby walk in front of Jersey. "And until we give you permission...you're not gonna do anything but answer our questions." Bigby said as Jersey continues to smile.

"How's your arm, Sheriff? Bloody Mary leaves a bit of a sting, don't she?" Jersey said as he points at Bigby's arm. Then he turns to Jack and said. "Jack, did you know that as of this very morning, Bigby's joined the Crooked Man's obedience school for wayward fucking creatures? He's already passed his first class. You see....the Sheriff and the Deputy had, who they stupidly thought was the murderer....been chasing him for fuckin' days, right? But the Crooked Man snapped his bony fingers....and these two handed him over just...like...that."

"I'm, uh, just gonna, uh...let you three...you know...." Jack said, nervously.

"The Crooked Man appreciated that." Jersey said to you and you glared at him. "Tell us everything you know right now about the murders, and the Crooked Man." Bigby ordered, angrily, as Jack walks out of the shop.

Meanwhile, Woody was looking through all of the display cases until he found the one with the card describing the axe. "Are you kidding me! It was here, it was right fuckin' here! What'd you do with it?" Woody shouted as he gets into Jersey's face.
"How the fuck do I know?" Jersey asked.

"Listen, you bald little dipshit, you're gonna--" Woody started to shout as he picks Jersey up but Jersey punches Woody in the stomach. Woody doubles over then shouts. "You piece of shit." Then he punches Jersey and the two began to fight.

You sigh as you and Bigby gets in between them and shove them away from each other. "Back it up, Jersey. You're dealing with us, now." Bigby said as he gets in front of Jersey while you hold a hand up towards Woody. "I didn't expect to see you upright. Still looking for whoever killed them hookers or are you done chasing your tail?" Jersey asked him.

"Where's my axe! Who'd you give it to!" shouted Woody. "You follow me here all the way from Battery fucking Park...just so I can prove to you that your axe isn't here...and you think I'm gonna take another inch of abuse" Jersey asked Woody, angrily.

"Hey! Back off and settle down!" Bigby ordered.

"Oh what the fuck are you gonna do? You talk big, but I don't think you got the stones to back it up." Jersey said to Bigby then he punches Bigby on the side where he was injured. "Bigby!" You shouted in fear as he doubles over in pain. "Still a little sore, are we?" Jersey asked Bigby, smirking. "Why should Mary get all the fun? You ain't so tough."

You clench your fist and sneak off to the side that way you could figure out an attack on Jersey as he continues to talk shit to Bigby. "Ya know what? I'm just gonna handle you myself....and I won't need no silver bullets." He said and you took your shot as you charge at him and slammed him against the glass display cases. He yelps and you grab his head slam it against the case.

"Motherfucker." He shouts as you slam his head against it again and the glass breaks and his face hits the crystal ball. You pull his head back and you see pieces of the crystal ball was in his face.

"What the hell are you doing?" Woody asked and he pulls you off of Jersey. "This is my fucking fight!"

"Not now, Woody. She was just protecting me." Bigby said as he walks up next to you, standing in front of Woody. "Dog, you got a lotta nerve--" Woody shouted but then you three hear a noise and look over to see a tall scaly and bony looking creature. The creature turns around and had the skull head of a horse and horns on the top of his head, this was the Jersey Devil.

He roars at you three as all of you look at him in shock. Woody charges at him but Jersey smack him to the side and starts to charge at you but Woody held on to Jersey's hand and pulled him down. Jersey gets on top of Woody and starts to claw at him repeatedly.

Bigby runs up to them and kicks Jersey off of Woody like he was a football, knocking him towards the back and hit a closet.

Bigby started to have some of his wolfish features as you grab your dagger. "Aww, protecting your friend....too bad you couldn't protect those whores." Jersey said as he climbs up on the table. "Go on, try to stop me!" He said and he jumps off the table and comes towards you two but Bigby raised his clawed hand and shoved his claw into Jersey then slammed him down on the ground.

"Fucking stay down!" Bigby shouted at him while Woody gets up and looks at the broken closet and saw his axe. "There she is!" He said.

Meanwhile, you and Bigby run over to Jersey, who landed near the front, and you two grab the gates and slammed it down on his back. Jersey screams as you two pull it up then start to slam it back down but Jersey grabs it and shoves it up. He starts to claw at you two but both of you dodge his attacks.

Bigby punches Jersey in the face until Jersey lowers his head and tries to shove his horns at Bigby but he was able to dodge the horns and grabs one and pulls it out of Jersey's head then shoves the horn into his stomach. Jersey screams in pain then shoves Bigby away toward the table.

Bigby groans in pain as Jersey jumps in front of him then shoved one of his clawed hands into Bigby's injured arm. Bigby yells in pain. "Fucker!"

Jersey shoves his claw deeper into Bigby's arm and was about to open his mouth and snap at Bigby but you jump on Jersey's back and stabbed him in the shoulder. Jersey screams out again and pulls his claws out of Bigby.

You continuously stabbed Jersey in the shoulders as he tried to get you off of his shoulder. Finally, he grabbed the back of your shirt collar and threw you off of him. You rolled towards the glass table and hit it with your back. You groan and shake your head as Jersey walks to you.

"Hey asshole. I found her." Woody said before he slammed his axe down on Jersey's head. Jersey let's out a scream then he knocks Woody to the side and tries to pull the axe out. Bigby looks next to him and picks up an anvil, raises it above his head then slammed it down on Jersey, knocking him down on the ground.

Bigby drops the anvil to the side as he turns back to his normal form while you stand up and go over to him. "You okay?" You asked him. "Yeah. You?" He said. You nod at him as Woody walks over to Jersey and pulls his axe out of Jersey's head. Then he hovers the axe over Jersey's neck and he looks up to you and Bigby and nods.

You two smile at him then Bigby squats down to Jersey and said. "So.....wanna try again?"

"You can't find the Crooked Man. No one can. There's no address, no place....he lives in the bends and forks of tree roots....behind the sun....in the....shadows." said Jersey. "That's not good enough." You remarked.

"The door to his house....it bounces around. Never in one spot. You'll never find it. Even Crane had to use the Magic Mirror....that fuckin' guy. Mirror, Mirror...fuckin' shit..." Jersey grumbles. "Okay, that's Crane's way....how do you contact him?" Bigby asked him.

"I don't. He uses couriers for everything. Ravens, goblins, the fuckin' Tweedles.....whatever. I go in when I'm taken there. You don't know anything....about anything, do you. What do you have? Nothin'. That useless bitch, Snow White, and a broken fuckin' mirror....no fuckin' friends. And no clue about who is really runnin' this town." Jersey said and you raise your dagger and stab him in the arm.

"Call my sister a bitch again and you won't be so lucky next time!" You said as Jersey let's out a groan. "Now, where did you hear that the mirror got broken?"

"Oh. That. Gossip flies fast. We're like a sewing circle. It doesn't matter what you fuckin' do, you're not gonna get him. You two wanna knock on his fuckin' door and see what happens? Fine. Crane had the Mirror. Bloody Mary had Crane. So take your fucking wrecking crew act to the butcher shop." Jersey replied.

"The Cut Above." Bigby mutters. "And if we can find the mirror piece there, we can find the Crooked Man."

"That's her spot. That's where all the magic happens...." Jersey replied and Woody removes his axe away from his neck. Jersey begins to crawl as he said. "Now leave me so I can find me some aspirin." Then he falls face-forward on the floor.

"Will Mary be there?" Bigby asked Jersey. "You want me to draw you a picture? I don't fucking know....you got what you want, now get the fuck outta here...." Jersey replied.

You and Bigby glance at each other then stand up and start to leave the shop, Woody following behind you two, until Jersey turns around and said. "Hey...Sheriff....Deputy."
Both of you stop as Jersey continues.
"Those girls are still dead....and there's nothin' you two can do to bring them back. And I don't know what they did, but I do know this... if they're dead, it's cause the Crooked Man wanted them dead. That's all it takes. So you can roar, smash the place up. Shit, you can wail on me all you want, but what good is it gonna do ya? Cause he ain't in your town. You're in his."

Bigby turns around and kicks Jersey in the face, making he yell and fall back down on the floor. "Just shut the fuck up, will ya?" Bigby said and he turns back around and the three of you walk out of the shop.

Bigby pulls out a cigarette when Woody asked. "Got a smoke?" Bigby lights his cigarette and smirks as he pulls another one out, lights it and hands it to Woody. "Thanks." Woody said as he smokes it. "Shitty brand."

You smile and shake your head as Bigby said. "You're welcome."

"I'm not gonna lie, I was having trouble deciding which one of you to hit with this thing." Woody said to Bigby. "Well, thank God you picked Jersey." you said, smirking, as Bigby drops the cigarette and treads it out.

He walks off to the side of the sidewalk and signals for a taxi. As the taxi drives up to you, Woody says. "Jersey was wrong, you know."

"About what?" Bigby asked him.

"About those girls. There is somethin' you two can do about it. You can get the fucker who did it. Ain't that the plan?" Woody asked.

"Believe us....that's all we've been doing. This whole damn time." You replied. "Alright. Well....go do it, then." said Woody then he begins to walk away while Bigby opens the cab door and let's you go in first. You climb in as Bigby turns to Woody and said. "Hey Woody."

Woody stops and said. "Yeah?"

"I'll see you around, alright?" Bigby said. Woody turns his head to look at Bigby over the shoulder then said. "Yeah, I'll see ya." before he continues to walk away. Bigby looks down for a moment then he climbs in the taxi and shuts the door, making your way to the butcher shop.